The main conflict in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is man vs. nature, referring to both Geralt's conflict with the physical world around him and its natural state of being. Narrative design allows writers to manipulate characters, setting, and plot in order to create conflict that is engaging, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's duality of internal and external conflict creates more dynamic characters and story.
In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the narrative team composed a storyline so robust and intersecting that players may have trouble piecing together which characters are on what side, what factions are at war with whom, and a myriad of other details. Yet what never gets lost is how Geralt of Rivia, protagonist of The Witcher 3, is a character who faces off against different types of enemies and obstacles on his journey to rescue Ciri from the Wild Hunt.
Types of Conflict in a Narrative
In any given narrative, there are multiple conflicts that either take place in the mind of the main character (internal) or are out in the open (extenal). For example, a boss fight in Elden Ring would be "man vs. man" out in the open, and so it is an external conflict.
On the other hand, Senua's struggle with mental illness in Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice is a classic "man vs. himself" internal conflict that exists in the character's mind - though that game externalizes those struggles to create a vibrant, dynamic world. Writers and game designers have various ways of designing internal conflicts to make more sense and have real weight in the storyline.
Sometimes the conflict in a game is man vs. nature, in which the character is contending not just with themselves or other characters, but also the world around them. Survival games like The Forest throw players into harsh worlds, in this case asking a father to brave the wilds in order to save his son from a cannibalistic tribe. Though the cannibals are the main antagonist, much of the conflict that the main character has to deal with comes from the world around him.
Man vs. Nature Conflicts in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Geralt faces both internal and external conflicts as he traverses the Continent in search of his adopted daughter, Ciri. The main internal conflict is a struggle with his own nature given Geralt is a Witcher, as even though he has a moral code, he is prone to extreme violence and brutality. He is known as the Butcher of Blaviken for a reason; there is something inherently evil about The Witcher 3's Geralt, even though he spends his time trying to find justice and peace in a harsh world.
This world is not particularly kind to Geralt. The people fear him for his cat eyes and silver hair, and they consider Geralt a monster despite hoping that he will deal with other monsters. Though he has done some bad things in his life, Geralt has also experienced bad things along the way. From the moment he went through the Witcher trials, his life has been nothing but difficult.
Externally, the nature of the world Geralt lives in is violent, dark, and unforgiving. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has many tough monsters that Geralt has to face regularly, including beasts, specters, elementals, griffins, and more. Geralt goes from town to town, checking to see if people are safe. There are countless fiends, ghosts, vampires, and other horrors all over the world, and people expect Geralt and the Witchers to protect them.
The world of The Witcher 3 is also steeped in a mysterious and fascinating magic. It is multifaceted (embodying chaos, art, and science) and runs wild creating different monsters, natural (and unnatural) phenomena, as well as other enigmatic things. The laws of this magic are difficult to comprehend and can sometimes break as the nature of the world falls apart. These laws create sorceresses like Yennefer and Triss, and are also at the source of the Witchers' sigil hand sign spells.
The White Frost is one enigmatic magic encroaching upon the Continent. Depending on which ending the player arrives at in The Witcher 3, characters live or die. This combination of internal and external conflicts makes The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's conflict mainly a "man vs. nature" ordeal in which the hero contends with his own internal conflicts, conflicts with other characters, conflicts raging around the natural world, and of course, Gwent.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is available for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S slated to launch later this year.
